1. Field of the Invention
The invention herein relates to cable reels. More particularly it relates to cable reels which experience severe service and are exposed to harsh weather conditions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
At commercial airports it is common for commercial aircraft to be manoeuvered to and/or away from passenger deplaning/boarding gates or cargo loading facilities by motorized push out/towing vehicles, which are often referred to as airport tugs. As part of such maneuvering, it is necessary for the tug driver and the airplane cockpit crew to be in verbal communication with each other. This is normally done by use of an communication cable running between the tug and the airplane. The cable is plugged into the aircraft's communication system, providing communication between the tug cab and the aircraft's cockpit, each of which includes ear phones and a microphone so that the tug driver and aircraft's pilot can talk to and hear each other.
Generally prior art tug-aircraft cables have been made of a single length of cable with plug-in connectors at each end. The cables are unwieldy for the tug driver or other ground crew members to handle and store. Since they have no permanent connections, it is common for cables which are not in use to be left lying on the tarmac or thrown across other pieces of ground equipment, resulting in frequent damage to the cables. The damage is usually severe enough to require discarding of the damaged cables. Since the cables are expensive, the cost to airlines of cable replacement are high.
There is therefore a need for a better way of handling communication cables for tug-to-airplane communication at airports. One way that such could be accomplished would be by having one end of the cable permanently connected to the tug for effective communication and the cable stowed on the tug between uses. However, in the past that has not proved feasible because stowage was difficult and time-consuming, so ground crews were often unable or unwilling to perform the stowage correctly. In addition, since the cable must be moved before and after connection to the airplane, and ground crews are frequently less than careful in their handling of the cable, it has been difficult with prior art equipment to maintain a good communication connection of the cable to the tug for any extended period of time, since rough handling has often damaged the connection equipment.